Wood-carbonizer



No. 749,091. PATENTED JAN. 5, 1904.

F. M. PERKINS. W001) OARBONIZER. 9

AIPLIOATION FILED PEB.19, 1903.

N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTED JAN. 5, 1904.

F. M. PERKINS.

WOOD GARBONIZER. APPLICATION FILED I EB. 19, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

l l l l l l l L Patented January 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK M. PERKINS, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

WOOD-CARBONIZER.

SPECIIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 749,091, dated January5, 1904. Application filed February 19, 1903- Serial No. 144,166. (Nomodel.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Beit known that I, FREDERICK M. PERKINS, of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Wood-Carbonizers, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in wood-carbonizers such as areused in the manufacture of charcoal, and has for its objects to providea permanent structure in which the wood may be carbonized to obviate thenecessity of burning a portion of the timber while carbonizing theremainder, to provide means whereby the liability of accidentallyburning the timber after it has been carbonized and made into charcoalwill be reduced to a minimum, and to otherwise improve devices of thiskind, as will be understood by the complete description of theinvention.

The invention consists of the novel construction, arrangement, andcombination of parts, as will be fully described hereinafter andclaimed, and'it is carried out substantially as illustrated on theaccompanying drawings, which form an essential part of thisspecification, and whereon like characters of reference refer to likeparts wherever they occur on the different parts of the drawings.

On the drawings, Figure 1 represents a horizontal section of onearrangement of my improved carbonizer. Fig. 2 represents a verticalsection of the carbonizer on the line A B shown in Fig. 1. Figs. 3 and 4represent, respectively, a horizontal section and a vertical sectionsimilar to those shown in Figs. 1 and 2, but of another arrangement ofthe carbonizer.

Heretofore it has been the practice when carbonizing wood in themanufacture of charcoal to form a stack of the timber which is to beconverted into charcoal, placing a certain amount of dry-kindlingmaterial-at the lower part of the stack. The entire stack was thencovered with a coating of earth and sod, leaving an aperture orapertures at the bottom for the admission of air to the interior of thestack and an apertureat the top for the escape of the smoke from thefire used in carbonizing the wood andfor the escape of the gases andvapors distilled from the timber the charcoal ready for use.

while being carbonized. The kindling ma.- terial was then ignited andallowed to burn until it and a snfficient portion of the stack of timberhad been consumed to create heat enough within the mass ofthe stack oftimber to properly carbonize the remaining portion of the timber. Theapertures or a greater part of them were then closed, thus extinguishingthe blaze from the fire, and the heat was consequently confined withinthe stack and allowed to dry and char the remaining timber until theentire mass was converted into charcoal. After the stack had remainedsufficiently long to cool below a temperature at which combustion wouldoccur the earth and sod were removed, leaving In this method ofmanufacturing charcoal it will be seen that there was a loss in theamount of charcoal which might be made from a given amount of timber, asa portion was consumed in creating heat to carbonize the remainder, andin many cases this timber was more expensive than other material whichmight be used to create the necessary heat. By this method considerabletime was consumed in covering and uncovering the stack with earth andsod.

In manufacturing charcoal in a manner as above described it oftenhappens that there is too great a heat generated or that the covering isremoved prematurely, and in either case it results in the burning of theentire stack and the loss of the charcoal which has been made.

My improved carbonizer consists of a permanent structure 1, made offireproof material, such as fire clay, brick, or analogous material.Within the structure 1 is a carbonizing-chamber 2, which is preferablycircular in cross-sectional area, but. may be made in any desired shape.Entrance to the chamher 2 is obtained by means of a suitable door 3,which may be looted, if so desired, to prevent the admission of air tothe chamber.

Referring to the arrangement of my device, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, acombustion chamber or furnace 4 is made within the walls of thestructure 1 and has a flue or duct 5, which extends Within the walls ofthe structure 1 from such combustion-chamber to and nearly around theupper part of the structure 1. Branch fines or ducts 6 6 from the flue 5are formed within the walls of the structure 1 in such a manner thatthey extend downward to the lower part of the wall of the structure,where they communicate or open into the carbonizing-chamber 2 near thedoor of said chamber. The wall of the branch flues and, if so desired,that part of the flue 5 which is toward the carbonizing-chamberispreferably made of sheet metal 7, so as to radiate the heat to saidchamber as rapidly as possible. The openings of these branch lines arepreferably distributed around the lower part of the walls as much aspossible, for a purpose to be understood by the complete description ofthe device. Afiue 8 forms communication between the upper part of thecarbonizingchamber 2 and the open air, and this fine may extend througha chimney 9 of suitable height, or said chimney may be dispensed with,according to the location of the carbonizer and the conditions of thesurrounding country.

The operation of the carbonizer as above described is substantially asfollows: The wood to be carbonized is placed within thecarbonizing-chamber 2, preferably standing on end. A fire is builtwithin the combustion chamber or furnace 4, and the heat and otherproducts of combustion are conveyed fromthe furnace 4 through the flue 5and branch fines 6 6 into the carbonizing-chamber. The heat within thecarbonizing chamber increases by this introduction of heat through thelines 6, whichenters the lower part of the carbonizing-chamber andpasses up through the wood within, causing the gases and vapors to bedistilled from the fibers of the wood, which gases and vapors pass fromthe carbonizing-chamber through the flue 8 and the chimney 9 when thechimney is used. After the gases and vapors have all been distilled fromthe wood and have passed ofi the flue 8 is partially closed by means ofa damper a; or other equivalent and well-known device, but which hasbeen shown on Fig. 2 as a rotary damper and on Fig. 4 as a slidingdamper. By thus confining the heat within the chamber 2 the wood willbecome charred, and thus form charcoal, which may be removed through thedoor 3.

The fire in the furnace being outside the carbonizing-chamber, the flueand branch fines from said furnace being sufficiently long and thebranch flues extending downward to the lower part of thecarbonizing-chamber will prevent the flames from the furnace from everreaching the wood within the carbonizer, but will cause the heat and theheated products of the fire to be conveyed to thecarbonizing-chamber,and th us carbonize the wood contained therein. Thiswill obviate the liability of the contents of the carbonizing-chamberfrom becoming ignited and being consumed, and the wood will becarbonized more evenly.

In Figs. 3 and 4 I have shown an arrangement of my improved carbonizerin which the furnace 4 is placed outside the wall of the structure 1 andhas a due 10, which extends from the interior of the furnace to the wallof the carbonizer and through the wall to the lower part of thecarbonizing-chamber. Said flue is preferably divided into a number ofbranch flues 11 11, extending under the floor of the carbonizing chamberto openings through said floor. The openings in the floor of thecarbonizing-chamber are distributed over different parts of the floorand are preferably provided with protections 12 to prevent the charcoalfrom entering the branch fines as much as possible, but to allow thefree passage of the heat from said branch flues into thecarbonizing-chamber. The operation of this arrangement of my carbonizeris substantially the same as that of the arrangement shown in Figs. 1and 2, and therefore will need no further description.

From the above descriptions of the two arrangements of my carbonizerwhich I have shown in the drawings it will be seen that the flame whichis used to generate the heat by which the gases and vapors are distilledfrom the wood to be carbonized and by which the wood is then charredinto charcoal is never brought into contact with the wood, andconsequently there is very little liability of the wood within thecarbonizing-chamber from ever being accidentally burned.

By having the fire used to carbonize the wood located in a furnaceoutside the carbonizing-chamber the entire amount of fuel which isconsumed may be of the cheapest kind irrespective of the quality of thewood which is being carbonized, and I am able also to convert all of thewood which is placed within the carbonizing-chamber into charcoal, asnone of it will be consumed in the process of carbonizing.

Having thus fully described the nature, construction, and the operationof my invention, I wish to secure by Letters Patent and claim- 1. In awood carbonizer, a carbonizingchamber to receive the wood to becarbonized, a furnace within the walls of the carbonizingchamber andwithin which heat is generated to carbonize the wood in said chamber, afine from said furnace having branch flues communicating with thecarbonizing-chamber, said flue and branch flues also located within thewalls of said chamber, and an exhaustfiue from the carbonizing-chamber.

2. In a wood carbonizer, a carbonizingchamber to receive the wood to becarbonized, a furnace located outside the carbonizingchamber in whichheat is generated to carbonize the wood in said chamber, a flue fromsaid furnace having branch flues formed on the inner walls of thecarbonizing-chamber and extending to the lower part of said walls.

where they communicate with the carbonizing-chamber, thin metal platesforming the structure, branch flues from said flue extendpartitionbetween the branch flues and the ing downward at intervals around theinner v carbonizing-chamber to radiate the heat into surface of thecarbonizing-chamber and com- I 5 said chamber from said flues, and anexhaustmunication with the lower portion of said 5 flue from saidchamber. chamber, and an exhaust-flue from the car- 3.Inawood-carbonizer,apermanentstrucbonizing-chamber.

bonizing-chamber for the wood-to be ca rbonnature in presence of twowitnesses. ized, a furnace outside the carbonizing-cham- FREDERICK M.PERKINS. IO ber within which heat is generated to carbon- Witnesses:

ture of fireproof material containing a. car- I In testimony whereof Ihave afi'ixed my sigize the wood, a flue from said furnace and ex- IMORGAN PERKIus,

tending partly around the upper part of said HENRY OHADBOURN.

